The air dusty from the earlier blast. Heat rippled through the chamber, smoke curling like a ghost's sigh against the arched ceiling. The summoning circle on the marble floor was damaged. The once-perfect runes bleeding out faint light like dying embers.
Alvin knelt beside it, his fingertips grazing the glowing residue. "Mana Disruption Dust…" he muttered, voice heavy with disbelief. The room fell into an silence, only the faint squeak of the white rabbit breaking through, Ethan's confused, utterly misplaced voice of innocence amidst dread.
Rose's eyes widened. "Mana Disruption Dust? How can that be." She took a few steps closer to the circle. Her blue gown brushed against the floor as she knelt beside him, her hands trembling slightly. "This dust… it's rare. Nearly impossible to obtain. You can only harvest it from a special kind of beast and that beast is also very rare."
Her words hung like cold iron.
Ethan, still processing his transformation, tilted his little rabbit head, blinking up at them. Mana Disruption Dust? Great. So I got dragged into a magical crime scene.
If he could sigh, he would've. Instead, all that came out was a squeak that sounded like a rubber toy being stepped on.
Alvin continued grimly, "If it's used to tamper with a summoning, it doesn't just disrupt mana.The outcome becomes unpredictable and dangerous."
Rose pressed her palm to her lips. "That explains the smoke and the explosion. We thought Rivera was summoning something powerful, but..."
Alvin interrupted softly, "No. It was the dust."
The pieces aligned like shards of glass clicking into place, forming a picture none of them wanted to see.
Someone had tampered with Rivera's summoning circle.
Either to sabotage her… or to kill her.
A chill swept through the hall. Whispers stirred among the watching nobles, fear, speculation, disbelief.
"No…" Rose's voice cracked, barely above a whisper.
She stood abruptly, skirts flaring. "I checked the circle myself before the ceremony. I made sure no one touched it." Her tone rose, defensively now, as if the accusation itself was a blade.
Alvin looked up at her, his expression grim but calculating.
"Rose… are you absolutely sure no one came here after you left?"
"Yes, I'm sure!" she snapped.
But Alvin's eyes didn't waver. They probed, heavy with the weight of suspicion that only comes when reason begins to collapse.
Her voice broke.
"WHAT HELL, ALVIN? DO YOU THINK I DID IT? ARE YOU CRAZY? SHE IS MY DAUGHTER!
Her words echoed sharply through the chamber, slicing through the murmurs.
Ethan blinked. Oh great. Family drama. Just what I needed. He shifted awkwardly on his tiny paws, his fur puffing out like static. He wanted to yell, Hey, maybe don't fight over the smoking murder circle while I'm standing on it? But all that came out was another squeak.
Rose's voice trembled with both fury and heartbreak. "You know I could never do this to her, Alvin."
For a moment, the tension thickened. It was like two powerful beasts, staring at each other down over a mess of broken runes and suspicion.
Then Alvin sighed, the kind of sigh that carried years of command and fatigue. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I was… quick to judge."
Rose's shoulders sagged, relief and sorrow fighting for control. "You damn right you were." she muttered, brushing away a tear that hadn't even fallen yet.
He looked back at the circle.
"But then who?
How?
Why?"
His words came like gunfire, each sharper than the last. "Someone used a material that is very rare. They had access to the chamber, bypassed our guards, and evaded your mana inspection. The person must hold powerful position in this family."
Rose's lips tightened. "Or something worse, maybe an assassin."
Alvin clenched his fist, the veins along his arm pulsing faintly with mana light. "They must've entered right after your inspection, before the ceremony even began. Which means…" He looked up at the ceiling, his expression shadowed. "It must be someone close to us. Someone with access to the family wards."
The nobles in the room exchanged nervous glances, their whispers turning into a low rustle of dread. The Dalmenton name had always been untouchable, so who would dare.
Then Alvin's hand slammed against the marble. "Damn it!" His voice thundered through the hall, shaking the chandeliers. The nobles fell silent instantly. The crimson afterglow of the summoning runes reflected off his eyes, turning his fury into something almost demonic.
Rose stepped forward, gently touching Alvin's fist. "Whatever happened… it's already done," she said softly, her voice a balm to the chaos. "Rivera is safe. That's what matters."
Her calm cut through the tension like light through fog. Alvin exhaled slowly, his jaw unclenching. "Right," he murmured. His gaze drifted toward his daughter, Rivera, who stood a few steps away, her expression a fragile mix of guilt and confusion.
"Are you hurt, Rivera?" His tone softened, paternal, the iron stripped away.
Rivera shook her head quickly. "No, Father…" Her voice was small but steady.
Rose approached, her face softening. "Give me your hand, dear. Let me check you."
"Yes, Mother." Rivera's hands trembled slightly as she extended them.
Rose clasped them gently, her mana glowing faintly around her palms. "Hmm…" she hummed quietly, eyes narrowing in focus. "No physical or mental damage."
Alvin hovered beside her, his usual stoicism replaced by concern. "What about her mana?"
Rose didn't answer right away. She closed her eyes, focusing deeper, tracing the current of energy within her daughter's veins.
Then Rose spoke softly, "Her mana is excellent. Stable. But she's exhausted. She used too much mana during the summoning."
Alvin exhaled, the tension in his shoulders easing just a fraction. "Thank God…"
Rose smiled faintly, brushing Rivera's hair from her face. "Her mana control saved her. Anyone else would've been torn apart by that crimson surge."
Rivera looked down, voice trembling. "But… I summoned a rabbit."
Rose's smile faltered, but she squeezed her daughter's hand. "Don' worry about that now."
Rose leaned forward and pulled Rivera into her arms.
And for a brief, quiet moment, the great hall of the Dalmenton estate was still.
Rose hugged Rivera tightly.